Spring Practice Day 1 -- A New Atmosphere
March 28, 2011
By Anthony Casson
For osubeavers.com
It was a new atmosphere within the dry confines of the Truax Indoor Center for the first session of spring football, perhaps because of the high energy that comes with position experimentation and wild catches down the field, or perhaps it was how new coaches like Brent Brennan (also Chris Brasfield) seemed to mesh well with the players.
A dense sideline of fans and media enjoyed a few laughs as Brennan, Oregon State’s new wide receivers coach, sprinted up and down the field as his players changed stations.
“It’s just more fun that way,” Brennan said. “Knowing how spread out everything is, it’s hard to see everybody at the same time if you’re standing still. I think you’ve got to get around to see everybody; everybody needs to hear your coaching points, because they’re getting to know me and I’m getting to know them, so I need to know what they can do too.”
He would chuckle and yell and release more cheerful energy than one might think a tall, soft-spoken person like him was capable of releasing. Senior receiver James Rodgers smiled after practice when asked about Brennan’s exciting attitude; “I love it,” he said.
Sunday night was the first time Brennan had met the players; he’s not even moved into his own place—offensive coordinator Danny Langsdorf gave him a place to stay until he and his family officially settle in Corvallis. He drove up on Saturday from California after his flight was canceled.
“No boxes. I got a big duffle bag,” he said.
The wide receivers were as upbeat and ready for spring ball as their coach. Former receiver Aaron Nichols joined the sidelines and helped the group jumpstart their first session.
Junior Markus Wheaton had an amazing day, making quick sweeps to the edges and big-time catches deep downfield against tight coverage. His impressive outing came after his return from a spring break trip to Guatemala, where he and teammates (among other former and current student-athletes) seniors Lance Mitchell and Johnny Hekker, and sophomore Rashaad Reynolds helped build a house for a family in need with Beavers Without Borders.
“The experience top to bottom was an absolute adventure,” Hekker said. “We really brightened some eyes for a needy family, and in return they brightened ours. We built a house for a family of eight – a hardworking father and a stay-at-home mother. We felt going there and giving them a better place to live and a better environment will give that family a start to a better future. We were really fortunate to have that experience, and probably the biggest joy of the trip was to see how excited the children were to see us and their new home.”
The experience put everything into perspective for Wheaton and his teammates who made the trip. Perhaps some of it carried over into their play, as they seemed completely calm and happy throughout practice.
Wheaton most often caught passes from sophomore Cody Vaz, filling in for junior Ryan Katz (hand). Freshman Sean Mannion and sophomore Jack Lomax shared snaps, but they and Vaz looked relatively similar, as far as first-day performances are concerned. They were busy knocking off the dust for most of the afternoon.
Senior defensive tackle Kevin Frahm made a quick grab of a backwards pass that Mannion failed to connect with freshman running back Malcolm Marable. Senior linebacker Cameron Collins intercepted Vaz later in the session, and then freshman safety Ryan Murphy picked off Lomax towards the end of the session.
Coach Mike Riley plans on keeping the team in shorts for the entire week and will have them switch to pads next week. For the first day, it was simply about getting players back into the groove and new coaches introduced to the format.
The running back, defensive line, and nearly every other squad will face some shifting and positional swap in the coming weeks.
“It’s a great time of year,” Riley said. “We’ve got a lot of work to do. We just have a lot of development to do in almost every area. We have really got to look at our personnel hard this spring and see the correct placement.”
The Beavers will be back at practice Wednesday at 2:30 p.m., most likely in the Truax Center. Several Beaver players are expected to be testing some new Nike gear, including jerseys and shoes.
Support Oregon State University Athletics by making your tax deductible donation to the Beaver Athletic Student Fund. For more information follow this Varsity O Facebook Page for upcoming Alumni events. Follow the Beavers on the team’s official YouTube page.
